Economic Diversification in Nigeria in the Face of Dwindling Oil Revenue

Abstract

There is no doubt that petroleum (crude oil) has contributed substantially to Nigerian revenue since its discovery in 1956 and more especially, since 1970 when its price was on the upward trend. However, it is a known fact across the globe that for a country to attain growth and development, its economy has to be diversified. Diversification does not occur in a vacuum. Mono-economy needs to give way to the productive development of various sectors of the economy. Following the supply and demand limitation of major importers from the country, which brought about the fall in the price of oil by more than 40% since June 2014 when it was $115 a barrel, which now is below $70, after five years of stability, it is a well-known fact that Nigeria's continuous large earnings or revenue from this sector will be impossible. As a matter of fact, there is an urgent need for the Nigerian government to begin looking into diversification of various sectors of the economy so as to attain solid economic growth. The Neo-Classical Growth Model, some empirical researches and secondary data collected and analyzed support our call for the diversification of Nigerian economy with an urgent need to decentralizing concentration on mono-crude oil -economy. These studies have shown that there exists a positive relationship between economic growth in Nigeria and diversification of other sectors because, when there were proper management of human resources, huge investment and concentration on agriculture, Nigerian economy was recorded to be healthy and vibrant. In those golden years, agriculture offered over 70% of Nigeria's teaming population job opportunities. Descriptive statistical method likewise was employed in this paper. This paper however, attempted to seek out how diversification of the economy will enhance stable and viable economic growth in Nigeria.

Keywords: Economic diversification, Oil Revenue, Agriculture, Human Resources Management